How to Prepare Your House to Sell for More

May 6, 2010

Preparing your house for sale can be a daunting task. When you’re selling your home, there are things about your house you might not notice or mind that can make a big difference with potential buyers. Even if these fixes or improvements seem small by themselves, taken as a whole they can have an impact on how much you can sell your house for.

We’re thinking about putting our house on the market and a realtor gave us some tips for preparing and staging our house that have been shown to result in higher sale prices.

Curb Appeal

Trim your trees & shrubs

Plant seasonal flowers

Weed flower beds

Put out fresh mulch

Paint your front door

Keep your porch clean

Cleaning Your House

Clean the carpets & then keep them vaccumed

Polish or wax wood/vinyl floors & then keep them swept

Wash all your windows

Clean your light fixtures

Replace the bulbs with higher watt bulbs

Clean out fireplace ashes

House Smell

Air out your house for cigarette or dirty diaper smells

Keep a candle burning

Get the pets out when showing

Decluttering Your House

Clean out your closets

Organize your drawers & cabinets

Don’t have things lying on the floor

Clear out piled-high shelves

Overcrowded with furniture

If limited kitchen counter space, keep it clear

Keep kids toys out of front yard and off porch

Bathrooms & Kitchens

Keep bathtub, shower, & sinks sparkling

Caulk and Grout tubs and tile

Fix any leaks in your faucets

Upgrading Your House

These are tips that aren’t necessarily required and will cost you money but can also make a big difference when selling your house.

Remove old wallpaper in the bathroom, kitchen, or entry

Replace outdated light fixtures

Where needed, paint the interior and exterior

Install new appliances

If you’re selling your home, hopefully some or all of these tips will help you get a better price.

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Ben Edwards, the founder of Money Smart Life, saved up enough to buy a Nintendo back when he was 12 years old. When he used the money to buy shares of Wal-Mart stock instead, he knew he wasn't like the other kids... His addiction to personal finance has paid off for his family and now he's helping you to afford the life that you want. Check him out on the web at Google Plus, Twitter and Facebook.

Selling your house is daunting but all of your tips are right on the nose. There’s no magic bullet or insurance that your house will sell if you do all of these things but it helps tremendously. It can be stressful to keep up in this way but it makes a big difference.

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About Ben

I'm Ben Edwards and I've been addicted to personal finance since I was 12 years old.

That passion for money has paid off for my family - so in 2006 I founded Money Smart Life to help you afford the life that you want. Read My Story...